'Time to stop being fan boy' - Ewen Ferguson sets goal after making Open cut

After completing his second round, adding a 73 to his opening 74, the recent BMW International Open winner felt certain that his five-over total would see him fall short of making the cut in the 152nd Open.

But, as scores soared in the afternoon due to the wind becoming brutal for a few hours, Ferguson moved above the cut line and so will be involved in the action on Saturday and Sunday as opposed to watching it on TV.

“Game was okay, but my body is broken this morning,” said the 28-year-old, who missed the cut on his debut in the game’s oldest major at Royal Liverpool 12 months ago. “I really struggled on the range, neck sore. Don't know what's going on.”

He’d made a disappointing early exit in last week’s Genesis Scottish Open and added: ”My swing wasn't firing. Yesterday it was okay, but still not quite myself. I had a nice bath last night and tried to get everything going, but four hours sleep, it's just not cutting it. Just a lot of golf recently.”

He got his wish for the “hairdryer to be turned on” for the players heading out as he was speaking and, though now a three-time DP World Tour winner, Ferguson admits he still has things to learn.

“To be honest, I still feel new to this side of things,” he said. “Last week playing with Jordan Spieth, I found myself doing a bit of fan boying then realised in the second round he's just another guy, says all the same stuff I say to my caddie, says all the same stuff to his ball.”

Local man Jack McDonald came up just short in his bid to cap a dream opportunity by also making it to the weekend. Playing with former Troon winners Justin Leonard and Todd Hamilton, the 31-year-old almost holed a lengthy bunker shot at the last only to then miss the par putt to fall on the wrong side of the cut mark on six over.

“I've played solid golf,” said McDonald. “The only bunker I found was that one on the last and, if I didn't feel as if I needed a birdie there, I would have probably not taken it on. I just felt like I had to do that, and yeah, I'm fine with it.”